Aged Care means assessment – Rental income from principal home 065-09030010

The system determines the Assessment Scheme the care recipient is affected by. This happens once the Admission and Pre-entry date is entered into the RCA Circumstances (RCIRC) screen.

• POST2016 - care recipient entered aged care after 1 January 2016. Net rental income from their former principal home is included in their Aged Care means assessment
• POST2014 - care recipient entered aged care, or commenced pre-entry leave, on or after 1 July 2014. Net rental income from their former principal home is not included in their means assessment
• POST2008 - care recipient entered aged care, or pre-entry leave, on or after 20 March 2008. Net rental income from their former principal home is not included in their means assessment
• PRE2008 - care recipient entered aged care, or commenced pre-entry leave, before 20 March 2008. Net rental income from their former principal home is not included in their means assessment

Before 1 January 2016 care recipient(s) must meet assessment conditions for rental income. That is, from their former principal home to be excluded from the Aged Care means assessment.

The Process page contains more details about the assessment conditions.

From 1 January 2016, new entrants into permanent residential care will have all the rental income from their former principal home included in their Aged Care means assessment.

A new assessment scheme code of POST2016 Assessment Scheme will apply for residential care recipient(s) only.

The Process page contains details about the POST2016 coding.

From 1 January 2016, care recipient(s) with a POST2016 Assessment Scheme will have the net rental income from their and their partner’s former principal home included in their assessable income.

Rental income for these care recipient(s) will be assessed for Aged Care means assessment. This is regardless if the real estate item is recorded on the Real Estate/Business Identifying (REBI) screen as:

• EXA
• EXP
• EX5, or
• EXE exempt

The Resources page contains more details about the codes on REBI.

No changes will be made to the process or procedures for recording a property as exempt. These exemption codes and associated assessments must remain correctly recorded for Income Support Payment (ISP) purposes.

EXE asset exemptions will remain unchanged for both ISP and Aged Care means assessment.

From 1 January 2016, rental income from a care recipients former principal home will be included in their means assessment if they:

• formally discharged from Aged Care means assessment for more than 28 days, and
• re-enter care

Care recipient(s) receiving a Home Care package are not subject to the new post 1 January 2016 business rules. These care recipient(s)

• receive care in their own homes
• do not have a ‘former principal home’ that can have rental income exempt from the income assessment

All care recipient(s) receiving home care are currently assessed under a POST2014 Assessment Scheme and will remain so after 1 January 2016.

Situations may arise where a care recipient(s) transitions between care types.

Where a care recipient departs residential care to commence home care from 1 January 2016, they will be assessed as POST2014.

Where a care recipient departs home care and enters permanent residential care from 1 January 2016, they will be assessed as POST2016. This is from their permanent residential care date of admission.

Residential care recipient(s) will be subject to a saving provision. This will allow them to remain assessed under a PRE2008, POST2008 or POST2014 Assessment Scheme in some circumstances.

Care recipients retain their existing assessment scheme if they:

• depart from permanent residential care, and
• re-enter permanent residential care within 28 days (inclusive)

This is due to the grandfathering provisions. That is, they will not be automatically set to a POST2016 Assessment Scheme.